Hell Hath No Fury
by Angelinsydney
Summary: How far will a man go to rescue the woman he loves? We all have a dark side. It lays dormant till push comes to shove. Spike will discover his dark side. An INTENSE love story. This was dedicated to Giuliana. HALLELUJAH, finally EDITED. Thank you for reading, even the badly written unedited first upload.
1. Missing

_**This is an intense love story. How far would one man go to rescue the woman he loves?**_

**Missing**

4:30 am. Winnie checked the digital clock on the bedside table_. It's time_. She had been very lazy lately so now she was starting to feel flabby_. Time for a run_. She faced the right side of the bed, and smiled a sleepy smile at the man in her life.

She didn't know what time he got home, all she knew was that it was wee hour of the morning. Spike had a late night meeting, with whom she hadn't a clue. Lately, he had been secretive. She was aware he was a consultant with Canada's intelligence agency so she deferred to his wishes for privacy. She looked at his sleeping form. _I don't know how you fit in so many things in a day._

Eventually, she forced herself to get up and change into her running outfit. She returned to the bedroom to borrow Spike's full-zip track jacket. It was oversize on her tiny frame but she liked it. She was supposed to have left the room five minutes ago but she couldn't move. She gazed at Spike and was unable to resist the urge to kiss his lips. Spike opened his eyes, squinted then turned to the other side. She followed to the other side and kissed the exposed part of his cheek. His answer was to grab a pillow and cover his face, and said a whiny, "Go away."

She smiled and invited Liley, the Canadian Eskimo dog and Moppet, the three-legged golden retriever to come along for the run. Liley didn't need a second invitation, but Moppet was not interested in the least. The golden retriever was always partial to Dad. She went to the bedroom, jumped on the bed and laid next to Spike.

Winnie shrugged her shoulders, accepting of the fact that Moppet was really Spike's dog. "Come on, Liley."

he pretty young woman dressed in body hugging black T-shirt, black tracksuit pants and a colourful, knitted cap to keep her head warm. She wore a pair of black hi-top running shoes. With Spike's full-zip jacket draped on her shoulders, she opened the door to let Liley out.

There were just a few cars on the roads, and even fewer pedestrians. The street lamps cast eerie glows in the mist of early Toronto morning. The cool, crisp air hit her to the bone. Ignoring the chill, she bent down to touched her feet, stretching her calves. She held this for a few seconds. She straightened up then bent her right leg at the knees, with her right hand she held it stretching the thigh muscles. She repeated this with her left leg. Satisfied with her preparation, she started on a slow jog, Liley patiently waited and took her time to follow.

The faithful canine was running about 50 meters behind. The dog could easily out-run her but she was not at top speed yet, she would be later in the park. Winnie was jogging in place while waiting at the street corner for the light to turn green, unaware of anything suspicious. Suddenly, a man jumped out from a parked van and grabbed her from behind. His right hand gripped her mouth while the left hand was wrapped around her small waist. Seeing the danger she was in, Liley didn't hesitate, in a single bound she leapt on the man. Her explosive power and weight of more than 65 pounds (30 kgs more or less) bore down on the would-be kidnapper. The impact of her contact was enough to topple him over to his side, releasing his hold on Winnie.

Liley howled with menace. The threat on her Mum raised her hackles and she bared her teeth. She was poised to pounce again, eyes blazing, when the man jumped back into the van and sped off. That was enough running for Winnie.

When they got back to the apartment, Winnie noticed she was hurt from the fall. She had a bruised chin, a black eye on the right side of her face and a sprained left wrist when she broke her fall. She got ice from the freezer to apply on her bruises.

Spike was still sleeping, which wasn't surprising considering it had been only 20 minutes since they left the apartment and were back again. There was nothing to do now but make a cup of coffee and watch the morning news. Her shift didn't start until 5pm, it meant she had a full day to do absolutely nothing.

She sat on the couch, her legs crossed underneath her. Liley stayed close, preferring to sit on the floor next to her.

It was another hour before Spike got up. He didn't get home till morning, but reading the digital time on the television screen she marveled that he was up at 6. She heard his footsteps, _I don't know how he functions on very little sleep._

One hour was enough to ripen the bruises on her face, and the discoloration made her look like she was punched in the face. She cheerily greeted Spike, "Good morning, Angel boy," not realising the extent of her injuries was evident on her face.

Spike's face crunched, "What happened to you?" He cupped her face gently and assessed the very angry looking bruises. "What happened?"

She was undecided whether to tell him the truth. She didn't think there was any need to worry Spike_, it may only be an isolated incident, not an imminent threat_, but Liley forced her hand. The canine howled. Spike looked down at her and noticed blood on her lip, "She has a cut. Miss Sunshine, what happened? I want to know NOW." He sounded alarmed which alarmed her.

He wouldn't forgive her if she lied so she told him everything that happened. Spike went to his bedroom and logged on to his CSIS issued computer. Unbeknown to her, it was patched to the traffic camera at the street corner. On the monitor he watched the archived recording of the attempted kidnapping.

"How did you do that?" she asked bewildered.

Spike ignored the question, instead he made a call, to whom, she didn't know. When this was done, Spike pulled her in a gentle hug and nursed her wounds. "I don't think you should go to work today. I'll call Sarge."

She stopped him, partly miffed, "Why not? You guys go to work all bandaged up. Why should I be any different?"

"Ok, but I'm taking you to work."

He knelt down, gave Liley a hug and a pat on the head, "Good girl, thanks for saving Mummy." He checked her mouth to make sure she hadn't lost a tooth and might have swallowed it. "She seems fine. Only a cut lip."

They had coffee together and watched the morning news. Winnie sensed he wasn't mentally present, "What are you thinking?"

He wrapped an arm around her, "What made you think I'm thinking?"

"Cause I can hear the wheels of your brain clicking. Michaelangelo, what is it?" He stroked her cheek, "It doesn't concern you. Sorry, that came out wrong. What I mean is I don't want it to concern you."

Spike got up and went to a hidden cupboard. He unwrapped a box and lifted out a black bracelet. It didn't look expensive or precious. It was made of tough rubber, it looked like one of those cheap ones with inspirational words like love, faith, truth. He put it on her wrist, "Don't remove this, ok. Promise me."

"Ok. Promise."

Spike was scheduled for the night shift, she though had to start at 5pm. But he was unwilling to let her out of his sight so they all rode off at 3pm to take Liley and Moppet to her parents. By the time they reached SRU HQ, Winnie had 15 minutes to spare before she logged on. Spike couldn't be bothered to go home so he slept off his fatigue at the Basement with Babycakes.

He went up at 7pm in readiness for his 9pm shift._ Winnie would finish at midnight._ He wasn't happy to let her go home by herself but it wouldn't be fair to make her wait at HQ for nine hours, may be even as long as 12 hours as happened sometimes. He bumped into Troy and got an idea, "What time do you guys finish?"

"Midnight," came the reply.

"Cool, can you give Winnie a lift home? We came together but I don't finish work till 5am tomorrow morning?"

"No problem." At the end of her shift, Troy took her home.

It was a quick drive, the roads being mostly deserted. When the reached her building, Winnie turned to Troy and said, "Thanks, no need to walk me to the door, it's safe here."

"You sure? It's no trouble..."

"Yeah, sure. Thanks again." She leaned in to give her friend a haste kiss on the cheek.

She got off Troy's car who followed her with his eyes till she got to the main entrance. That was the last time she was seen.


	2. The First 12 Hours

_A/N: Billy first appeared in the multi-story 'A Pleasant Surprise.'_

_Adrenaline rush, this is it….._

**The First 12 Hours**

**5.00am**

Spike's shift ended. Under normal circumstances, he'd linger around for 15 minutes just to be friendly to everyone, but not today.

Today, he had ants in his pants and couldn't wait to get out of there. He reached his apartment in 15, the traffic being light. He didn't know it yet but Winnie had been gone five hours. He didn't even have an inkling, after all, they had been very careful.

When he entered the apartment, he felt a sense of foreboding, call it sixth sense, or may be common sense would suffice. Her purse wasn't on the coffee table where she always left it. He went to the bedroom and the bed wasn't slept in. He checked the bathroom, no one had used it. Spike dialed her cell phone, it went to voicemail.

He reviewed archived recording of the previous night, there was nothing unusual. He saw Troy's car as it reached the street corner and made a turn into his street. He even made out a glimpse of Winnie's face from the passenger seat. A couple of minutes later, he watched Troy's car pass through again, this time he was alone.

**6.00am**

He was done checking the house for her presence. She was obviously not home, and he suspected hadn't even set foot inside.

It was the unholy hour of 6.00am but he couldn't care less, he called Troy, who was apologetic and miserable when Spike told him Winnie didn't make it to their apartment. T4's Main Man was upset and said, he was sorry, "I should have escorted her up to your apartment."

Not your fault, Spike heard himself say.

**6.30am**

Spike called Greg Parker, "Boss, Winnie's missing. Has SRU received any demands?"

The Boss asked for the full story, so he complied and related yesterday morning's incident. By now, Super Geek had entered worry territory full bore. "Boss, will you let me know if this has anything to do with SRU." Parker gave him his assurances and did one better. Rather than simply phoning SRU, he headed back to HQ to make his inquiry.

"Any packages for T1 or Spike?" he asked the unflappable Sidney, who was manning despatch at that time.

There was None.

**7.00am**

Greg called to say there had been no packages, warning, or demands of any kind. Spike thanked him for his help.

Winnie had now been missing seven hours.

**7.15am**

Super Geek cum Intelligence Consultant cum Bomb Tech cum Lover called in at the CSIS' CRIB, short for Communication, Reconnaissance, and Information Bullpen. His handler, Yoh-Lin Teh answered. They chatted in confidence.

What Yoh-Lin had to say offered a bit of relief, "There's no chatter of any kind, whoever took Winnie didn't take her because of your agency role."

The only problem was the information didn't narrow down the field of suspects_. Anyone could have taken her and I'm running out of time._

**7.30am**

Spike called Winnie's parents to ask if they could "Please keep Liley and Moppet a while longer," he couldn't bring himself to tell them their daughter was missing.

**8.00am**

He called Steph, Winnie's BFF since her University days. She would still be asleep but he couldn't worry about etiquette and good manners, not now. Steph answered the phone sounding sleepy, "Hello? This better good or I'll have your head."

"Steph, it's Spike. Is Win with you?

That woke her up quick smart, "What do you mean!"

"She's missing."

"What?" Spike repeated the story, if I'm clever I would record this and press play_, _he thought of the conversation he was having with his girlfriend's BFF.

There was a stunned silence, when Stephanie recovered from her initial shock, she said, "Sorry she's not with me. Is there anything I can do?"

None, he said but "please let me know if you hear from her."

When they ended the call Spike decided to shower and change. It helped him feel half human_. I need coffee._

**9.00am**

He called Greg Parker again, who drove over to Apartment 7. They decided to officially report Winnie's disappearance to the Missing People Branch of RCMP.

The City detective who took the report flippantly advised Spike that since Winnie was an adult a search will not be carried out until 24 hours has passed. "It's the protocol. Maybe she's just upset with you and went to be with a friend." Spike let him have it but Parker snatched the phone before it escalated to a shouting match. Greg apologised to the RCMP officer on Spike's behalf but at the same time negotiated on a high level cooperation.

Diplomacy won the day. "A senior detective will be there soon," he was told.

There was nothing else to do but wait. Greg called Ed who in turn messaged the Team. Raf forwarded it to Billy, his Aussie girlfriend, currently on secondment to RCMP EOD Squad from the Royal Australian Air Force Bomb Squad.

**9.30am**

One by one they trickled in. Apartment 7 became Missing Person Central. The tension was so thick they would have suffocated if they dared to inhale too deeply. There was nothing to do now but wait for the Detective to show up who, by the looks of it, was not in any hurry to be there.

**10.00am**

The Detectives arrived, Senior Detective Constable Lloyd Andrews and Detective Constable Marc Tan. Quick and courteous introductions were made. For the fifth time, Spike repeated the same story. Everyone listened intently, DC Tan wrote furiously on his note pad.

SDC Andrews did the interrogation. "Tell me what you did this morning." Spike recounted his efforts. Searched the apartment, called everyone he thought might know where Winnie was, and that he showered and changed.

"Your girlfriend was missing and you showered and changed?" Spike didn't like his tone and what he was implying but held his temper. The Team didn't like it either but Greg's eyes told them to shut it.

"You said there was an attempt on your girlfriend yesterday morning?"

"Yeah," Spike went to his bedroom and got a copy of the traffic camera's recording, he played it on the DVD player. "How'd you managed to get a recording?" Spike explained that the "how" was on a 'needs to know' basis." The SDC frowned and said it wasn't good enough.

Billy didn't hold back this time, "Fuck you." Raf took her outside to cool down.

The Detectives said they were sympathetic but until they could verify the recording, they couldn't allocate resources for a search, "There's a queue of missing people, we can't give you priority just because you're SRU."

Spike was slowly morphing into The Hulk but that wasn't the kicker, this was: "To be honest, if there's one person who can make someone disappear without a trace, it would be you."

It was the wrong thing to say to the wrong man at the wrong time.

What happened next was something SDC Andrews would never forget for as long as he lived. Spike got to him in two long strides, grabbed the cuff of his shirt, got up to his nose and hissed, "Say that again!" Ed Lane, Fearless Leader of T1 very quickly disengaged Spike from the Detective's nearly detached neck. Greg hauled Spike to his bedroom.

But Ed wasn't finished with the Detective, "If you want to get out of this place in one piece, you'd learn to show respect."

Red in the face, SDC Andrews said, "I think you've just assaulted a police officer."

"When I assault you, you wouldn't think it. You'd know!"

All the time wasted for no outcome. Winnie had now been missing 12 hours.


	3. Off the Grid

**Off The Grid**

In the privacy of the bedroom, Greg and Spike had a serious heart-to-heart. The Boss insisted he try his best to get some rest, "There's not much we can do now. It won't help Winnie if you exhaust yourself to death before we could find her." Spike knew deep down it made sense to rest and recuperate so he agreed to try. How the Boss thought he could manage it was beyond him but he wasn't going to argue.

Greg left him, and met with T1 + 1. "There's nothing we can do staying here but be a nuisance. We've got three days break, let's see what information we can gather. And hope we don't get called in to cover for any teams."

"Boss, we can't leave him here." It was Jules. It made sense after what just happened so they agreed on a rotating roster.

Sam and Jules would be on first watch; to be replaced later by Raf and Billy, then Sarge and Dean. The following day being a Saturday, Ed would cover with Clark. And, they would repeat the cycle. Their friend's need for close protection **from himself** came first ahead of any other commitments.

Sam asked if anyone had told Wordy yet, it soon became obvious that the honourary member of T1 was left out, Sam sent a text message. Wordy called back and offered to keep watch Saturday afternoon with his daughter Ally. They would repeat the roster as required.

Everyone but Sam and Jules left. They made themselves comfortable knowing Spike was resting if not asleep. Six hours into their watch Jules "had a feeling." Gingerly, she opened the bedroom door half an inch, enough to peep in. The bed was unoccupied, it hadn't been slept in.

"Sam, get your ass in here."

The blond ex-Special Forces guy didn't need any more prodding, he knew the pitch of that voice. _This isn't good._

"Shit." He went to the open window where the rope was still hanging. Spike left it there after he fast roped down. Jules called Sarge to report in, "Spike has bolted!" The Techie's car was still in the apartment's allocated car park. A GPS trace on his phone, with assistance from Troy's T4, confirmed what they already knew, Spike was off the grid.

T1 + 1 + 1 gathered at Wordy's house to discuss what to do next. Everyone was sombre but not worried, they trusted Spike; the Spike they knew well. When Wordy heard the story from beginning to end for the first time, he said, "If he doesn't want to be found, we won't find him."

"I have a theory." Again, it was Jules, "I think he's off the grid because our hands are tied behind our backs. The Law and all... you know, protocol this, protocol that! He thinks he'd be able to find her quicker if he didn't have anyone stopping him every which way he turns." Yeah, they silently agreed, sometimes the LAW can be an ass.

Spike contacted Luca, a super geek not unlike him whose job it was to oversee road traffic authority in Toronto. They arranged a rendezvous at a designated CSIS safehouse. He couldn't trust anyone at the moment except his Team at SRU and a bunch of other friendly computer nerds, member of Geeks United. He showed Luca the traffic camera recording of the attempted kidnapping of Winnie the day before.

After viewing it, Luca got up, ask Spike to follow, "Come with me." They went to the Roads Authority nerve centre, and reviewed footages of that specific street corner. Luca used a software that matched types of vehicles and registration numbers. He was looking for one that had parked in the immediate vicinity of that street corner. They pinged at least 20 hits on the same van over a five month period.

"I think Winnie has a stalker," Luca surmised.

That was the only conclusion they could arrived at; and, whoever he was knew about the traffic camera or at least smart enough to cover his tracks. In the 20 instances the van was pinged, the plate number was obscured by an object. A paper bag. A towel. Even newspaper. Clever bastard, Spike thought.

Luca asked, "Does Winnie have a laptop? I'm not a profiler but I watch a lot of 'Criminal Minds' maybe he's sent Winnie stuff."

Spike had the same idea, he knew where Winnie kept her laptop. He just needed to be sure his Team was no longer on stag at his apartment. "Yeah, she does. I'll go look into that."

"You said you gave Winnie a tracking bracelet?"

"I did. No signal," he said in a whisper, feeling the weight of his despair. "This means she's in a basement or maybe out of range of the tracking device, or…," he didn't allow himself to linger on that thought. If he did, he wouldn't wake up from this nightmare.

He thanked Luca, "This didn't happen ok. Until I know more, please don't tell anyone."

"You got it, buddy. Anytime."

"I owe you. You've saved my ass twice now."

"Hey, if not for you, I wouldn't be standing here right now. Just remember, anytime."

Spike left the building in a hurry and headed back to his apartment. He recced it. _All clear._ He went in, found Winnie's laptop, and sure enough the camera was on. Someone, somewhere was tracking Winnie,_Who?_

Spike disabled the camera and loaded Winnie's emails into his secure CSIS issued computer. He drew the curtain closed and worked in the dark. It didn't take long and much digging, he found what he was looking for. His first good lead. He would follow his nose until it led to Win.

Winnie woke up in an unfamiliar room. _Where am I?_ She didn't know how she got there and how long she had been in this strange surrounding.

The room was huge and it stunk of rust and oil and other nauseating olfactory smell. _A basement? An attic?_ She couldn't tell. There were no windows but there was a small vent about 12 feet above the ground to oxygenate the room. It was adequately furnished although mainly we old, basic furniture. She made a mental inventory: a single bed, a dresser, a table and chair, a radio, a television and a wardrobe. She looked up again and noticed a blinking green light, _a camera? _It had to be because just as soon as she raised herself on the bed someone familiar walked into the room, "Hi, sweetheart, how are you feeling?"

_Oh my God._

Winnie was instantly gripped with fear. Her stomach somersaulted. "Spike," she screamed.

"He can't hear you," he said in a singsong manner that frightened her. The man moved slowly, deliberately towards. His eyes disrobing her and his intent was clear. Just the thought made her skin crawl. She kept moving back until she felt her back against the wall and nowhere to run. "Spike," she whimpered.


	4. The Accused

**The Accused**

Saturday morning - Senior Detective Constable Lloyd Andrews officially declared Winnie Camden missing by virtue of the fact that Missing People Bureau had no record of her being located and by virtue of the fact that her boyfriend First Class Constable Michaelangelo Scarlatti of the SRU had gone to ground. He tried calling Scarlatti four times; all calls went to voicemail, "so much for the grieving boyfriend."

He accosted Detective Constable Marc Tan, "Hurry up, we need to get to SRU HQ." They drove a short distance to SRU-HQ and arrived just as Team 4 was starting their shift. The two detectives introduced themselves then asked to speak with Sargent Parker. They were told it was Team One's day off. "Tell him I need to speak to him urgently. Please." It sounded as though he said 'please' as an afterthought.

Sidney, the despatcher on duty complied reluctantly.

DC Tan opened his notes, "Also Troy, Sargent of Team 4. Spike said he brought Winnie Camden home, we should speak to him." SDC Andrews nodded and was about to asked for Sargent Troy when Sidney called him, "Sgt Parker's on the line for you, Senior Detective Constable Andrews."

Andrews thanked Sidney and he took the phone from him. "Hello, Sargent Parker, I'm here at your HQ, I've not been able to locate Spike, do you know where he is? You don't? I don't have to remind you that it's an offense to lie to a police officer, right? I'm here to interview potential witnesses or suspects as the case maybe."

The last sentence raised Greg's blood pressure, "What do you mean suspects?"

"I haven't ruled anyone out yet, especially not Scarlatti, just so you know. I'm willing to keep an open mind but it's hard when he's playing hard to get."

_The man has foot in mouth disease. _Greg Parker said he was coming to HQ and to wait for him. Just then, Troy came out of the locker room. "Troy," Sidney called out. "This is SDC Andrews and DC Tan they wish to interview you regarding Winnie's disappearance."

Troy didn't like the sound of it but he wasn't guilty of any crime and he wasn't withholding any information, therefore he had nothing to fear. "Sure, let's go into the briefing room." On the way in, Troy instructed Sidney they didn't want to be disturbed but he also deliberately left the door of the briefing room ajar.

SDC Andrews asked the first question without preamble, "How did Winnie look to you yesterday?"

Troy was taken aback, "What do you mean?"

The detective elaborated, "Was she sad, happy, tensed? What?"

"She was a little tense at the start of shift but she got better as the day progressed. We were aware that there was an incident, a man tried to abduct her. We don't discuss a lot of the personal stuff unless we're on a break or something." Troy leaned back a little on his chair when the detective invaded his personal space."

"Physically, did she look ok?"

"She had some bruises on her chin and black eye, as I said there was an incident." The detective jumped in, "But you couldn't discount the possibility that someone like Scarlatti could have punched her in the face, can you?" At that statement Troy gave the senior detective dagger looks. "I'm just saying," the detective said in his defense.

"No, but I can personally vouch Spike wouldn't do that to anyone least of all Winnie."

"Do you live with them?"

"No."

"So how can you vouch for him? Is there a culture of silence in the SRU, Troy?" At that line of questioning Troy went nuts. "I don't know what your agenda is but you are barking up the wrong tree and no, there is no culture of silence in the SRU." The shouting echoed in the halls of HQ that two of Troy's men entered the briefing room. It took two of them to restraint their Sargent.

Sargent Parker was walking down the hallway and heard all the commotion. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Nothing, he got all sensitive when I asked if there's a culture of silence in the SRU."

"There isn't," said Parker unconditionally.

"We're not done, Troy." It didn't matter, Troy was done with him and left with his men.

Sargent Parker sat down with SDC Andrews and DC Tan, who might as well not be there. He was useless as a toad. "Fire away."

"Where's Spike?"

"To be honest, I don't know. We don't know. I suspect he's doing your job," Parker stated. "I have a feeling you've already convicted Spike, well let me tell you this. That man has been an upstanding member of the SRU for five years with an unblemished record. You're not going to stain his name by associating it with wife-bashers and girlfriend-killers, do you understand me?"

"If you say so," was the detective's flippant answer. It took all of Greg's self-control not to punch his ugly self-righteous face.

"If there's nothing else, I've got to go. Believe it or not, I have much better things to do on my day off than waste it on you,"

They all stood up at the same time. Just then, his cell phone beeped. He checked who was sending him a message, it was a text from Billy.

Spike found his first clue and followed it. He went to a photography studio, the place where Winnie had a portrait made or more appropriately where portraits were offered to be made for her. He remembered the day clearly. One of those rare day-off they were able to have together. Winnie was wearing a white puff-sleeve shirt, tucked in a pleated skirt that ballooned out when she twirled around. She was also wearing her favorite black flats. Even though she didn't look anything like Audrey Hepburn, that day, in that outfit and in a very happy mood, she exuded an aura of innocence. Add to that the fact that she was holding a lollipop and happily swinging his hand.

They passed a portrait studio, and stopped to admire the beautiful featured photographs on the window. The photographer came out and invited them in. "You're so exquisite, I'd like to take your photo. I'll pay you to model for me. I'd like to blow up a portrait and put it on display on the window."

They both didn't think much of it but his work were indeed artistic so Winnie said, "I don't care to model but I'd pay you to take a portrait of me."

The photographer excitedly acquiesced. That day, she posed for him. He had her sit on a stool, her legs crossed, right over left. Her hands were clasped together, her elbow on her knee. She leaned forward and rested the right side of her face on her clasped hands. She had a tiny smile and a sweet look as if day dreaming. Winnie was excited when the photographic proof came. He did capture her beauty.

A full blow up black and white portrait arrived at the apartment a month later, but the photographer refused to accept payment. In exchange he said, he'd like a copy displayed on the window "just for a month". _Perhaps I should have put my foot down but it seemed harmless._ In retrospect, there was something very odd about the guy.

Spike arrived at the studio and asked to see the photographer, the assistant said he hadn't been in, "Not since yesterday...try again tomorrow,."

"Can I have a business card?" The assistant handed him one. _Joseph Kennard, photographer extraordinaire_, it said.

Spike called Jules, "I need your help. And I'm sorry about yesterday."

The diminutive one replied, "Don't worry about it, what can I do?"

"I have a lead." Spike gave Jules all the information he had on Joseph Kennard. "Can you find out if there were other missing women with the same characteristic as Winnie? I think we're dealing with a serial stalker and kidnapper." He couldn't say murderer.

"Leave it with me," she said. "How can I reach you?'

"I'll call you tomorrow. I owe you, thanks." he said sincerely. "And please tell everyone I'm sorry."

"Stop saying sorry. We're on your side. Tomorrow I'll have what you need. **What we need**." Spike smiled and perked up despite his fears.

"Take care," they said to each other.

Without delay, Jules picked up Sam and they went to the cold case department. "What's this about?" inquired her blond boyfriend. Jules explained what they needed to do on the way over.

The Cold Case Department personnel was helpful and gave them access to certain files, those of missing women. With time constraints, they had to narrow down the search so they decided to start with missing women with black hair. The list went back 10 years, and five of them had the same physical characteristic as Winnie. "They could be sisters for all we know," said Sam. They made copies of the photos and made a note to themselves to follow the cases up.

Then their mobiles sounded almost simultaneously, a text from Billy.

Winnie had an emotionally and mentally terrifying time. The man didn't rape her in the way of penetration, but in her mind it was worse. He pinned her down on the bed, sat atop her, his legs gripped her torso. With one hand, he held her wrists, arms over her head. With the other, he traced her face and her body with his fingers; and professed his love, his adoration and his desire to make her happy.

She closed her eyes and forced herself to think of Spike. She recited Sonnet 43 in her mind over and over and over again. Tears flooded down her cheeks. Finally, unable to bear any more she pleaded with her captor, "Please get off me. Please stop."

The man stopped, got off her and was very pleased with himself. "See I told you I'll do anything to make you happy." In his sickening, creepy, sing-song manner of speaking, he said, "Tomorrow is our wedding day." He gleefully went on his way. It took all her self-control not to go into hysteria,_ I'd much rather die. _The gnawing fear was eating at her.

But after several hours, she was convinced she had to self-rescue. She steeled herself. _Winnie_, _you can do this. You can help yourself out of this. Give yourself a chance._

She looked around to find something she could use. _A knife, a fork, a spoon, anything._ She noticed the water pipe that ran along the length of one wall. She remembered Spike telling her how sound travel_. That's it I'll tap an SOS signal in Morse Code._ Spike taught her that. She found a small metal object and she started tapping. She steeled herself, she would tap forever if that was what it took to be free.

She would give herself every fighting chance. She only rested from the tapping when her wrist ached. As she massaged it, she felt her wrist and realised she was still wearing the black rubber bracelet. It gave her hope. "Don't take this off, promise me."

With renewed hope, she tapped, tapped, tapped again. And again, and again, and again. Someone, somewhere may be listening. She hoped.


	5. The Visitor

**The Visitor**

**Saturday afternoon** - the second of their three-day rostered day off, Billy sent a message to T1 and Wordy. Her middle brother was visiting, could she please have the honour of their presence. They all said it would be their honour to meet Lance-Corporal Bryce Cameron, Australian SAS. It felt as if they were betraying Spike to be organising a party, but truth be told, there wasn't anything they could do until he reached out to them. All they could do was to be contactable and available, ready for action.

Meanwhile, the man hadn't come back, the creepy photographer! Winnie was hopeful, she needed to be hopeful.

She didn't know the time or day. _When was I abducted? How long had I been here?_ All she knew was he molested her and touched her and she felt violated and she was fearful for her life. He said they would be married tomorrow. _What's tomorrow?_ She finished work Friday at midnight. _Is today Saturday? Sunday? Monday?_ She was totally disoriented. _What time? Was it morning when he came to abuse her? Afternoon or night?_ It didn't matter. _I will have to keep tapping._ This was the only chance she got of maybe, just maybe, being heard.

And yes, someone heard!

The tap, tap, tapping reached upward via the water pipe. A man was trying to get a peaceful afternoon nap but the tap, tap, tapping was persistent. He was a Marine back in the 80s. Not only that, he worked as a communications technician. _That's an SOS signal._ The guy, former Marine Lieutenant John Gilbert called police!

Unfortunately, by the time the police arrived the tap, tap, tapping had stopped. The police threatened to slap a misdeamenor charge for wasting police resources! The honest to goodness man who was John Gilbert was very upset.

**Saturday night** - They all came. Sargent Greg Parker didn't tell anyone of his "interview" with SDC Lloyd Andrews. It would ruin the friendly atmosphere. For now, he decided to keep the peace.

Billy wasn't lying when she said she was the midget in the family. Lance-Corporal Cameron stood at 6'0 but wiry. Like most active serving SAS he was skinny, there wasn't an inch of body fat on him because he mainly lived off the land. Living behind enemy lines, he had had to meld into his environment. Dark as ebony, Lance-Corporal could very well be mistaken for an Egpytian or a Syrian or even an Iraqi, given the proper outfit.

The siblings had the same bluey-green eyes and the same delicate facial features, nothing too big or too wide or too angular. If not for his unshaved face and unkempt hair, the Lance-Corporal could be mistaken for a male model.

They held the get-together at Raf's apartment. It was BYO as the Aussies call it: Bring Your OWN. Lucky they had a Jules and a Billy on their team because they soon found out that the male subspecies of the homo sapien genus only thought to bring beer and other variety of thirst quenchers. Jules and Billy at least remembered to bring food.

The conversation was easy as if they had known each other a long time. Bryce asked what they knew of his little sister, not much they said. They only knew she was one of the best in bomb demolition and detonation. Bryce said that when he gets drunk enough he just might tell some trivia about Billy, the Little Cameron kicked him under the table. Bryce did eventually tell them a story about Billy and they didn't have to wait until he was drunk, they only had to wait for Billy to step out to take a call.

"Billy had it tough," Bryce said. "It was hard living with five older brothers and harder growing up in military camps. It got tougher when she enlisted. A lot of the guys hated her and bullied her. She has a lots of battle scars to prove it.

"Some guys thought she got in because of us, so the first two weeks of camp, she got severely bullied. One day the enlisted men and women were in the mess hall having dinner, when this asshole," he pointed to Wordy, "about your size started picking on her. Saying things she's like sleeping with the CO to get enlisted. He was sitting at the table with his mates, smug as…

"Without warning, Billy went at him, head-butted him on the nose and broke it. Grabbed a handful of hair, jerked his head and got him in chokehold. It took three men 10 minutes to get her off him. I was one of the men." They were all in awe.

"My little sister has had a tough gig. Us, brothers, we're not as tough as her." They were all very quiet when Billy re-joined them, "What happened? Whose funeral are we going to?" She looked around wondering what happened in the five minutes she was away.

Her brother just said, "Who was that?"

"Who?" Billy feigned confusion. Bryce put his hand on his ears. "Oh, just catching up with an old friend." Jules had a feeling.

The conversation shifted to Spike and Winnie. Bryce listened thoughtfully, not saying much. They told him how easy going Spike was, and that he was a bit of the babbling genius type. It was in pretty much the same vein as what Billy told him already.

When it was his turn to speak, Bryce played his fingers on the table as if playing with an imaginary piano, he was deep in thought, "I've never met him. I only knew him from Billy's snippets. But I think you may have mistaken a wolf for a dog." He paused long enough for them to absorb what he said.

It struck them all like thunderbolt. "In the wilds wolves are monogamous. They mate for life. The saying 'Till death do us part' can't be truer for any living thing than the wolf. The sooner he finds Winnie, the better. If you can't help him because your hands are tied, that's fine but don't get in his way. Whoever has his girlfriend better not hurt her because it could get very ugly, very quickly."

They talk a little bit more till Bryce said he had a "cattle class to catch", he got up and picked up Billy who wrapped her legs around his waist. His military shirt lifted and revealed a menacing tattoo of a wolf, _yeah, he ought to know_, they thought. Jules wondered, ever the quick-thinking one in the team, _what's your story?_

When he put Billy down, he patted her on the head and admonished, "Be good." He shook hands with everyone but gave Raf a manly hug that took the air out of the young man, literally. Then, he was gone into the night. Billy wondered when she would see him again.

In the meantime, a lone wolf sat in his car watching the den of a predator. It won't be long, this predator would become prey. Whoever he was should have studied the wolf, had he done so, he would have known that wolves are APEX predator. They're on the top of the food chain and this lone wolf had sniffed his scent and would not let go.

_It would get ugly!_


	6. Damage Control

I loved writing this, every minute of it. I hope you enjoy reading it.

**Damage control**

**1.00am – Sunday**

After everyone's went their separate ways, Billy went to change. Raf watched her with a careful eye, he too had a feeling. Billy came out from the bathroom wearing a burglar suit, all black and body-hugging. "Goin somewhere, hon?" asked Raf in his languid way. "That was Spike, wasn't it? Callin' for support?"

Billy looked at Raf, and tried to measure his response, "He needs help. It's the least I can do so please don't stand in the way."

"Who said I'm gonna be in the way? I want to help too. If you're goin, I'm goin. You'd have to shoot your way out of here otherwise."

"I'm breakin and enterin. He didn't want you involved." Raf just smiled lazily, "Tough then cos I'm comin."

Billy and Raf went to the photographic studio, recced it and decided the best access was a small window in the back of the building where they would be out of sight. Breaking into it wasn't the problem, the problem was the size of the window, Billy would fit no problem but Raf? Not unless he could lose 20 pounds in 2 minutes.

Nothing could stop Billy, so Raf kept a stag watch for any incoming. Billy tried to remember Spike's instruction. _Look for anything out of place, odd, suspicious, disconcerting_. _Trust your instincts._ She had no other light source but the flashlight atop her Glock, which actually helped. She could focus on specific objects one at a time instead of being flooded with images because there were lots of images and pictures in there.

She noticed the dark room, she entered gingerly. What she saw took her breath away. Hundreds of strips of negatives hanged on a line; of women with similar physical characteristics as Winnie's. Every one of them wore the same wedding gown. And the groom, "fuck me" was all the same guy. _How many times did this guy get married?"_

She didn't have time, she grabbed a strip of negative for each of the women, she counted 10 but there could be more. Some of the women look so alike she didn't know whether she was getting copies of the same "wedding." She noticed an upright pull-out slats at the back of the dark room. She pulled one slat out and she gasped, "It's fucking Winnie." It was the same portrait she had seen hanging in Spike's living room. She took a photo with her digital phone/camera.

Billy pulled another slat, another woman, similar features and almost similarly posed. She took another photo. In all, there were 10 portraits. She had been inside for 15 minutes and Raf was none too happy. Raf whistled, time to go.

She holstered her Glock, pocketed her phone/camera and the negatives. She was out the same way like a cat in less than two minutes.

**2.00am – Sunday**

Spike obtained the suspect's address from a databank source, he had been on a surveillance mission since 5pm the previous day, watching the same house from a safe distance. At one point, he walked around the perimeter to check for cameras, alarm system and just generally to check out how nosy or non-nosy the neighbours were in this patch of suburbia.

Around 7pm, the photographer came home confirming that this was indeed his residence. Spike walked to the suspect's car to attach a transmitter. He put two for good measure.

At 1.30am, the suspect left the house. _He sure keeps odd hours._

At 1.36am, Spike was inside the suspect's house. The Techie didn't need SRU-issued lock-pick. Paper clip would do, if you knew what to do.

At 1.55am, Spike had searched the house for any sign of hidden basement or attic construction. He tapped the walls, ran his fingers on cracks to see if air was passing through but none was found. _Wherever he may have stashed Winnie, it's not here_. But he had a feeling this house had ghosts. _Only one way to find out, bring in the cavalry._

Spike went to the kitchen and emptied the cupboards, then he helped himself with laundry stuff. He turned on the gas, and cooked himself an explosive mix from household goods. He left the way he came in, closed the door, got in his car and followed the glowing beep, beep, beep on his receiver. As soon as he turned the first corner, an almighty "bang" erupted, the house was ablaze. He looked at his watch, 2.00am. Any minute now the fire brigade and the arson team would descent, and that house would give up the ghosts.

**2.30am – Sunday**

The photographer visited his studio. Whatever the suspect was doing inside it was, Spike thought, meant to be quick. But now, he was taking a very long time. _He's noticed something was not quite right, good work, Billy._

Indeed, as soon as Joseph Kennard turned on the light in his studio, he noticed a boot print on the table just under the window. He went to his dark room and found several strips of negatives missing. The slats of portraits had been pulled out.

Joseph Kennard, photographer extraordinaire and serial kidnapper and murderer went ballistic. He threw things around, kicked and screamed. He would have to move again.**_ Again! _**He was livid but he didn't have time to waste. He's getting married shortly. He pulled the suitcase containing the wedding dress; and the equipment to take photographs with. But since he won't be able to come back here again, he started packing his souvenirs, too.

And the Wolf waited.

**8.30am – Sunday**

Greg's phone buzzed. The call was from a dedicated ex-staff who moved on to a desk job at RCMP. "Sarge, get in here. SDC Andrews is calling for a press conference for 1pm. This is bad, boss." Greg Parker thanked the caller and phoned Ed, "We've got a problem. I'm comin to you."

In the car, Greg told Ed about the scheduled press conference for 1pm. "He has it for Spike. He's convinced Spike killed Winnie, bloody idiot. We need to call commander Holleran. Can you do that, Ed?"

Ed was already dialling the Commander's cell phone. Greg listened as Ed told the abridged version of Winnie's disappearance, "The detective has called for the press conference to shake down the tree and see what falls out but by the time the dust settles, Spike career could be over. We can't let this happen, Commander. I'm willing to stake my neck out for Spike. Hell, we all do. He didn't do it."

When he ended the call, Greg asked, "What did he say?"

"He said he'll do everything he can to get a media black-out, but no guarantees." Ed paused, "Greg, what about Winnie's parents, have they been told?"

"Shit, I don't think so? I don't think Spike had the heart to tell them. Shit, call Jules, tell her to go to Winnie's parent's in case the detectives are there. Shit."

Ed's finger was on speed dial again, Jules answered on one ring, "What's up?" Ed gave her a brief rundown of event. Jules was running to her car and dressing herself at the same time. "The detectives could be questioning Winnie's parents right now, Jules. Step on it."

Sam caught up with her, jumped in the driver seat and got the car in gear. They arrived at the Camden's residence just as the detectives' car was pulling in the curb. Jules ran into the house, Sam blocked the path, "Hey, you guys, what's up?" Sam looked the guys dead straight in the eyes, daring them to get pass him.

SDC Andrews tried to appear nonchalant, "We have an appointment."

"So do we." Sam stalled them to give Jules a chance to explain what had happened and to allow the Camden to absorb the news of Winnie's disappearance. She told them truthfully that she had hard evidence that spike had nothing to do with it and that SRU had a solid lead, the detectives didn't. "They're pinning this on Spike. They're refusing to look at other suspects. And, Mrs Camden, I want you to know that we're very close to finding Winnie, close."

The detectives were let in, and true enough, the line of inquiry were very much "leading" to a certain outcome. Mr and Mrs Camden didn't want to have any more to do with the detectives after several questions that were out of line, "Look at that dog," Mrs Camden pointed to Moppet, "Do you know anybody who'd adopt a three-legged dog? With special needs? She was at the pound for two months and no one wanted her but Spike. Leave my house before I throw you out."

The detectives turned to leave with their tails between their legs, on passing Sam, SDC Andrews said, "You think you're so smart, yeah? Wait till I'm done with all of you people." Jules got between him and Sam or he'd have landed in hospital.

**9.00 am – Sunday**

The tap, tap, tapping started again. Ex Marine Communicatins Technician had had enough but then he had a thought, _What we have here is a failure to communicate, s_o communicate with Winnie he did.

After the first SOS, he replied with "I hear you." Winnie thanked God she paid attention to Spike when he twisted her arm to learn Morse code.

Winnie: Help

JG: Problem

Winnie: Kidnapped

JG: Name

Winnie: Winnie Camden, SRU

JG: SRU?

Winnie: Yes. Please call SRU

JG: Affirmative

John Gilbert didn't waste any time. He called SRU. Peter answered. "Do you have a Winnie Camden that works there?" Peter said, "Yes, why?"

"Is she missing?"

"Yes, how do you know?"

"I'm communicating with her via Morse code. The sound was coming through my water pipe, is there someone who can help?"

"Hang in there," Peter rushed to the briefing room, "Donna, there's a man on the phone claiming to know where Winnie is." Donna dropped everything and answered the call. She took down all the details and said, "Mr John Gilbert, thank you."

She gathered her Team, "Peter, this is a Hot Call. Tell Greg, **NOW.**"

Peter was delighted to do so. Meantime, Greg and Ed still had to do damage control at the Press Room, with the help of a sympathetic backroom staffer. They posted a sign on the door, "Press Conference Cancelled." Reporters who were already on-site were told to leave and come back later on further notice.

Greg's phone buzzed, "We know Winnie's location, I'm patching you to Donna's Team." Greg mouthed the info to Ed. Ed sent a group text to the team.

**10.00am - Sunday**

The tap, tap, tapping sound had ceased, _again_. John gilbert was worried, "Oh God, they're going to think I'm fibbing again."

Donna and her team arrived at his location he met them and showed them the water pipe. "She hasn't tapped a message for 15 minutes, I'm worried."

"Have you tried 'talking' to her?"

"No, I always wait for her to start first."

"Why don't you start and see if she answers?d

JG: Hello?

Winnie: SOS

JG: SRU's here

Winnie: Who?

John gilbert looked up, "She wants to know your name."

"Donna."

JG: Donna

Winnie: Thanks.

She said "thanks."

It turned out it wouldn't be easy to find Winnie because the building where John Gilbert lived **didn't **have a basement. If she was in one somewhere, she would have to be found through a grid by grid search.

Donna reported back to Greg, "Unbelievable!"

_**So near yet so far!**_


	7. The 11th Hour

**The 11th hour**

**11.00am – Sunday in the Suburb**

Fire House 21 arrived on the scene with two fire trucks at 2.15am, the neighbours came out onto the footpaths to take photos and to sticky beak about "what happened." Uniforms arrived to create a safety perimeter to protect the bystanders from their own "curiosity and idiocy". Fire fighters doused the flames quickly but damage to the house was still extensive. The Fire Captain called the arson squad to investigate the suspicious fire, "it doesn't take a genius," he said on the phone.

At precisely, 9.00am arson investigators arrived at the scene.

At 10.00am, the embers had died down and they were able to start shifting through the rabble. It didn't take long for the first of many skeletons to be revealed as walls collapsed and crumbled. It had become clear to arson investigators that humans had been entombed inside false walls. The Chief Arson Investigator called the Coroner's Office, "it doesn't take a genius," he said on the phone.

At 11.00am, a team of forensic scientists arrived to contain further contamination and damage to the crime scene. The house had finally begun to give up the ghosts it held for many years. But within minutes, the world media was in full attendance. The Chief City Coroner looked out and at the gathered media men and women, and said, "Really?"

And, there they were all: reporters, camera men, photographers, lights men. _What happened to common decency?_

**11.00am – Sunday in the Old Part of Toronto**

Donna Sabine and T3 divided the grid to search for the underground basement. They narrowed down the search area by obtaining from City planners a copy of the underground sewer, basement near or around John Gilbert's house. It was a race against the time.

Greg Parker and Ed Lane arrived at the scene to find out firsthand how they could help. Greg rushed to the gathered SRU officers, "Donna, how's it going?" Sargent Parker knew his place, he was not here to take over the operation, this was T3's.

"We're good, we have the city plan and we're now dividing it up into grids. Right now, we're good," Donna said with a reassuring smile.

Ed interjected, "Donna, we're here to help in anyway, we're not here to meddle, take over or anything but please if you're a man short or you need extra hand, we can get our guys here." Donna noted the offer but she felt strongly that they could manage it.

T3 assembled and dispersed after getting their tactical instruction, before she left, Donna asked Greg and Ed to man the Command Truck so all her guys could be on the move, "Copy that." Donna saluted the men.

They headed underground, dressed like cyborgs with their helmets, headlights, armour vests, firearms, navigation compass and maps. The chase was on…

**11.00 – Sunday in Toronto Central Business District**

Joseph Kennard packed his "souvenirs" in a manic fashion, talking to himself, mumbling how he couldn't live without his precious memories. By the time he was satisfied that everything he needed had been packed away it was already 8.30am.

At 9.00am, he phoned his removalist service with instructions to move his crates to a warehouse somewhere downtown, "You know where it is. I need them moved now, whatever much it costs, do it!" He was yelling down the phone to the business owner who said he would only do it for CAN$500 per crate which was a ridiculous amount of money and he knew it. To his eternal surprise, Joseph Kennard said, "Whatever, just come now! Now!" _Who was he to argue with that kind of money?_

At 10.00am, the removalist arrived. Spike called Raf and Billy for support.

At 10.30am, Raf and Billy arrived to witness the removal activity. Raf took photos of the crates being loaded just in case they were required to give evidence in the Court of Law. They would also follow it to its final destination. While watching the loading activity, Billy put her feet up on the dashboard, "We work well together, hon. Wanna open a detective agency?"

Raf teased her, "And call it what, Baf Detective Agency?"

"Baf?"

"You know, Billy and Raf, Baf."

Billy laughed, "You're so corny!"

At 11.00am, with all his "worldly goods" packed and transported, Joseph Kennard drove away to marry Winnie Camden. The Wolf followed at a discreet distance; aided by the transmitters in the photographer's car.

**In the Maze**

At 11.30am, Joseph Kennard, mad man, serial abductor of women and murderer parked his car a short distance from John Gilbert's house. He knew this underground by heart. _I love it here, pity I have to move again. _Spike followed stealthily_. I can't lose him now._

The suspect entered a wooden door that appeared to anyone on the street as completely dilapidated and dangerous to even handle, let alone move. But moved it, he did. He closed it again as soon as he was inside. Spike couldn't risk following too quickly, he gave him a five second head start. Super Geek's heart nearly stopped beating as soon as got inside_. It's a maze._

_Bloody hell! I take the wrong turn, and its game over!_

He wasn't alone six other cyborg-looking SRUs were thinking exactly the same thought. The map they were given don't mean crap!

_Oh Winnie._


	8. Inside the Cauldron

**Inside the Cauldron**

Spike stood at the mouth of the entrance. _Think. Think. Don't go in there without a plan._ The sane, lucid part of his brain, screamed at him to consider it. It's the self-preservation instinct built-in in the very nature of man. _Don't go! Call for help! Stay!_

But the enraged, panicked part of his brain was yelling at him to do something **_NOW OR WINNIE WILL BE DEAD. NOW. NOW._**

Spike looked around him, _he must have a way of monitoring Win, he must have, _he reasoned. There must be electricity or wireless signal somehow. There had to be, he looked around and then up, there it was! The cable, recessed in the cracks of the wall, the cable had to be connected to a modem somewhere in the cauldron. He remembered the tracking device he gave Winnie to wear. He hoped against hope that she still had it on her. He took out the miniature receiver he carried in his pocket, it beeped; his pulse started to beat double-time.

He took out his Swiss Army Knife, attached to it a mini Maglite. It was now a matter of finding the shortest route to where Winnie was being held, he looked for a clue. Yes, the dust print.

It got darker and darker as Spike got deeper and deeper into the underground. _Bunker? Sewer?_ Whatever it was, it wasn't going to be his or Winnie's grave. His adrenal glands were secreting massive amount of adrenaline as the awareness of his surroundings heightened. The beeping on the receiver got louder, his strides were longer now and his muscles poised ready to pounce when the time came.

Joseph Kennard entered the room, which used to house implements and tools for the sewer maintenance. The photographer was proud of his efforts to convert this into a "comfortable room for his bride-to-be." He greeted her, "How's my princess?"

Winnie closed her eyes and prayed for rescue. But, no, she opened her eyes and made a determination that she wouldn't go out without a fight. She wouldn't go easily. She gave him a dagger look which made the demented man in her presence laugh his head off, "I like feisty women. I like you very much," he said in his sing song manner of speaking.

Kennard opened the suitcase, brought out the wedding dress, "You'll look exquisite in this. After our wedding ceremony, we will make love…" he didn't get to finished what he was saying, Spike had come from out of nowhere. In an instant, he was gripping Kennard's neck in a headlock.

Winnie backed herself in a corner unable to believe the scene unfolding before her. Spike's screaming jolted her to reality. "Run, Win, run." She was torn. I can't leave him here with this monster but she also knew that Spike needed her to be out of harm's way. She had to remove herself as another variable for him to consider, so while the two men grappled with each other's throat, she ran, in which direction, she didn't know.

She must have turned three corners when she bumped into Donna, the sudden impact and at the sight of the SRU officer in full gear got her going into a screaming fit. Donna held both her shoulders tightly and shook her, "Winnie, it's Donna."

When she came to, "It's Spike, help Spike. Please."

"Spike's in there?" Winnie nodded almost dumbly. Donna motioned for one of her men to take her out but Winnie refused. Almost instinctively, Donna knew, Spike would **need** to see the woman he loved safe. Her mind revisited, very briefly, to a time when she thought Hank was dead. She was ready to kill an unarmed man to avenge her newly wedded husband. "Come," she said.

They followed the echoing sound of primal screams to a room. The two men; one mentally deranged and the other impassioned, locked in mortal combat. "Aargh," they heard Spike holler. _This isn't good._ Donna got there first followed by two of her men and Winnie.

"Spike!" she bellowed. But Spike's muscles had locked on to the beast and wouldn't let go; as much as he wanted to, his muscles, every fibre, every sinew of his body, had contracted around the man's neck. The man who violated the woman he loved. Donna knew it would just take seconds for Spike to snap the man's neck and she didn't want to have to shoot this wonderful human being to save a monster. "Spike," she said again and aimed her Glock at him.

Winnie sat on the ground to be eye level with him, "Spike," she said between sob, "please, please let him go. Please. I need you." She sat there hiccupping, sobbing, begging. Spike's energy slowly depleted, his eyes focused on Winnie as she wept before him. His mental sight narrowed to just one person and his body eased up enough for Donna to snatch Joseph Kennard from his arm. "Cuff him."

Sargent Sabine recognised the moment - she eyed her men, "Let's leave them alone."

Spike and Win sat on the ground and just held each other; there was nothing to say. They were just content to listen to each other's beating heart!


	9. The Aftermath

**The Aftermath**

They didn't know how long they sat on the ground. They probably would still be there if Greg Parker didn't come to get them. The Boss, he was as always, unobtrusive. He made his presence known by coughing outside. Winnie and Spike disentangled from their embrace; he stood up first and pulled her to him. "Coming," Spike called.

When they came out into the bright light, Winnie covered her eyes, unaccustomed now to direct sunlight. Greg shielded her. The paramedics quickly attended to her severely hungered and fatigued physique. Spike watched them quietly, his heart still beating faster than his normal 'at rest' rate. He noticed a hand on his shoulder, it was Raf's. He turned around and they hugged, Raf patted his back, "Thank God, man."

Billy stood looking at the two of them, brothers-in-arm, "We'll take you home then we'll get you to the hospital." She wrinkled her nose, "You stink man!" For the first time in three days Spike smiled.

"One minute," Spike went over to Ed to shake hands with the Fearless Leader who he could ALWAYS, ALWAYS count on to have his back. "Thank you." Ed Lane nodded and then looked at the direction of a newcomer. SDC Lloyd Andrews had arrived, no doubt to claim the glory. "I want to catch up but I need to stop the circus," glancing towards the press mob ready to take in every word from SDC Andrews.

"Better you than me," said Spike, the dimples started to show again after an absence of several days.

Ed Lane could only be described as formidable, and his presence couldn't be ignored. He went to the gathered media people and took over proceedings before SDC Andrews could formulate the first sentence in his head. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm First Class Constable Ed Lane. I'd like to introduce you to Sargent Donna Sabine of SRU Team 3 who led the capture of Joseph Kennard." He led the masses of media people to where Donna was packing their gears and getting ready to go.

"Sargent Donna Sabine, these people have questions for you," he said as he gripped her elbow lightly. Donna was horrified, she hissed in his ears, "Are you crazy? We're SRU. We don't care to pose for pictures and talk to media. Are you mad?"

Ed's eyes twinkled, "If there's anyone who should get the credit for this take down, it should be Team 3. So basked in the glory and don't be shy."

Donna saw SDC Andrews at a distance. The penny dropped. Of course, she had heard of the false accusations and the episode of the detective's swagger into the SRU. _Time to play ball._ The first female Sargent of the SRU flashed her disarming smile and took questions from the media, but she wasn't much of a media whore. All the journalists got were short answers, "Yes." "No." "Absolutely." "No comment." "Investigation will be continuing." "Thanks." "Goodbye." Short answers but at least SDC Andrews didn't get to claim the glory.

Mr and Mrs Camden were Winnie's first visitors. Sam and Jules drove them while Dean minded Liley and Moppet. The SRU despatcher was asleep when they arrived. The attending doctor was kind and gentle, she told them that Winnie had no physical injuries apart from on-set of malnutrition and dehydration but they should expect to deal with the aftermath of mental and emotional wounds. "But nothing that love can't heal," she said.

Raf and Billy brought Spike home. The adrenaline rush was over so he could now see the state he was in. _Ooo, he stinks_. He smiled at the thought of how long it would take Raf to remove the smell from his mini car. He noticed Raf and Billy exhaled the minute they were out of the small vehicle, Spike laughed in spite of how feeble he was feeling. Billy glared at him, "Typical" she said.

Spike showered while the newly minted couple helped themselves to coffee. After 15 minutes Billy worried that Spike might have drowned in the shower, "Spike, you ok?" She hollered.

"Yeah."

"He's still alive" Billy informed Raf who laughed at his cute little girlfriend's quirky ways. Billy watched him laughed, "You're in love with me," she said cheekily.

"I can't help it," he replied.

When Spike came out of the shower, Billy made a comment to Raf's hilarity, "You're sparkling. Bloody bleached yourself in there, mate." She was funny when she talked bloody Aussie.

The Techie went to his room to change but half an hour later Spike hadn't come out, Raf checked to see what was taking so long. Spike had fallen asleep, the towel still wrapped around his waist. They left him to sleep off his fatigue. Winnie would still be in hospital sleeping off her fatigue, so no harm done.

They all had to be back at work tomorrow but there was another matter to clear. Raf called Greg Parker to ask what to do with what they found at the studio and where they were moved to. Parker had a feeling, he truthfully didn't want to know but he had to ask how they obtained the so-called evidence, "by breakin and enterin," said Billy. Parker very quickly said, "I didn't hear that."

Anyway, to make the long story short, they met at Wordy's house which became the de facto Party Central for the Team. Raf brought his camera full of photographic evidence of the crates' removal. Billy showed them her photos of missing women, and Sam and Jules brought copies of reports of cold cases. Ed and Greg were stumped! They looked at each other, "What the?" Sam, Jules, Billy and Raf beamed, pleased with themselves.

Greg couldn't help being cheeky himself, so he told them with all the seriousness he could muster, "You guys realised all these will have to be turned over to SDC Andrews, who can then claim the glory of solving the serial killer case?" As expected, there was an eruption of protestations. Ed and Greg laughed their heads off.

Wordy had a word with Cold Case Department which sent over their Lead Investigator. All evidence were transferred to his care with strict instructions not to disclose where he got them from, he was very happy to comply.


	10. Healing Comes in the Everyday Moments

**Healing Comes in the Everyday Moments**

Winnie stayed at the hospital for two days and that was about all she could bear. She went home to Apartment 7 in the company of Liley and Moppet. And Spike, well Spike was back at work.

The forensic scientists were still shifting through the rabble at the house in the suburb; where neighbours were unaware that the man who used to live there butchered women, his wives, he called them. The Chief Coroner said it would take weeks before they finished collecting the bone fragments and months before DNA comparisons could be matched to records of missing women.

Sargent Donna Sabine received hundreds of thank you cards and letters from mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, friends, fiancés of the disappeared. Many said they didn't know if any of the deceased were their relatives but that at least some families could sleep better tonight, _please accept our thanks_. Donna passed on the thank yous to T1, who collected them and passed them on to Spike, who passed them on to Winnie to read.

The pretty despatcher had a week off work so she spent the time learning new recipes. She was trawling the internet one day for new ones to learn when she came across a website called A Jock's Guide. She viewed it and enjoyed the funny way cooking was taught. Winnie noticed the camera wasn't blinking and it made her feel even better.

Anyway, she tried the old fashion fudge first, had a little wine and a bit of dancing to go with the cooking process because Kate suggested that was how cooking should be done. Winnie laughed at herself. Even Liley and Moppet were into the dancing bit, so that couldn't be bad, right?

Spike came home one day to the aroma of burning banana bread. She totally forgot about it while she soaked in the bath. Liley and Moppet were out for a walk with Dean Parker, their sweet, sacrificing dog-walker; although no doubt the smoke alarm would have alerted her before the apartment ignited in flames. "What would you have done if I didn't get home in time, woman? Must I always save you?" Winnie laughed and pulled him into the bath fully clothed.

In many ways, Winnie was healing quicker than Spike who continued to check her laptop and practically look under the bed, too. Laughing hadn't come as easily to him as in times past but she knew deep down it was only a matter of time. He was a good-natured person, _it's gonna be ok._

They were walking their dogs to the park for a run when Spike asked her how she was doing, "I'm good. I can't let him win so I will live my life as if he didn't happen." Spike was struck at the wisdom of that, _live your life as if he didn't happen, _he repeated to himself. I will try to remember that, too.

"You? How are you?" He pulled her in for a hug. He exhaled, "Getting there," he said. As he watched Winnie and the dogs play, he recalled a conversation he had with a little Nun a year ago, "Love cost," she said. Yes, it does.

On the way home, Spike asked her to go to a cottage at Lake Simcoe for the week-end. That would be lovely, she said.

The place held a special place in their hearts because it was here that their love was in one sense cemented. They walked on the beach one morning. Spike led them under a tree. He climbed up, and he reached down to pull her up to him. It had a thick branch, robust and healthy. Spike leaned against the trunk; she sat with her back against his chest. Their left leg rested on the branch, their right swung back and forth in tandem.

From up there, they had the view of the water. It lapped against the shore and took with it grit and sand. It dawned on her that the sea has done this since time immemorial. It cleansed the earth. The sun came up overhead, the leaves shielded them offering succour. He knew, healing won't come quickly but it does come; just by living the everyday moments.


End file.
